Students in distance education institutions are
expected to be self-directed in their learning. This basic
notion leads to the two major purposes for conducting this
study. The first major purpose was to obtain descriptive
data regarding the readiness of the students of the
Universitas Terbuka (the Indonesian Open Learning
University) for self-directed learning. The second major
purpose was to examine the relationship between the
readiness of the students for self-directed learning and
their academic achievement. Coincident with addressing the
major purposes, the context of the study led to the
development of several subsidiary purposes.
The data were collected through the use of the SelfDirected
Learning Readiness Scale (SDLRS}, which was
translated into Indonesian. The translated version of the
SDLRS was completed by 369 students of the Faculty of Social
and Political Sciences in Universitas Terbuka at the
beginning of the second semester of 1992 (92.2). The grade
point averages (GPAs) of the students were obtained at the
end of the same semester.
The findings revealed two major conclusions: (a) the
students of the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences at
the Universitas Terbuka showed average readiness for selfdirected
learning (M= 215.5); (b) a positive correlation(~=.24} was found between the SDLRS scores and the GPAs at a probability level of .001.
Subsidiary analyses of the data resulted in a number of
further conclusions. Firstly, female students showed higher
readiness for self-directed learning than did the male
students. However, there was no significant difference in
GPAs between females and males. Secondly, there were no
significant differences in the SDLRS scores among the levels
of education (freshman, sophomore, and senior). An
additional finding was that there was a significant
correlation (~= .24) between the GPAs and levels of
education at a probability level of .001. Further analyses
found that there were significant differences in GPAs
between freshmen and sophomores, and between freshmen and
seniors. However, there was no significant difference in
GPAs between sophomores and seniors. Thirdly, there were no
significant differences in SDLRS scores and GPAs among
students' study programs within the Faculty of Social and
Political Sciences (Public Administration, Business
Administration, and Development Administration). Finally,
there were no significant differences among students from
different occupational statuses regarding either their
readiness for self-directed learning or their GPAs.
Implications of the present study were addressed, and
recommendations for further research were provided.